1957-1967 THROWBACK: “BLACK NEWS REPORTS”

While today’s television’s landscape is arguably as diverse as its audience, that hasn’t always been the case. From its beginnings in the late 1940s, American television was a nearly all-white medium., producing a troubling and incorrect image of a society in which people of color were all but invisible.

Throughout television’s first thirty years of broadcast, people of color were generally cast in highly stereotypical roles, like the Mexican banditos of “The Cisco Kid” or the slapstick duo in the mistral show-inspired “Amos and Andy.” For Native Americans, many acting jobs went to Caucasians masquerading in “red face.” African-American actors were marginalized into largely one-dimensional roles, nearly always playing servants or providing comedic relief. As recent as the 1950s and early ‘60s, just one network show featured an all-black cast. Asian-Americans faced similar stereotyping. Even martial arts master Bruce Lee was relegated to the role of a subservient houseboy on “The Green Hornet.”

Despite widespread discrimination, another tide was rising. Gradually, people began to push the networks to allow more roles for people of color and by the mid 1970s, producer Norman Lear was ushering in a new wave of African-Americans with shows like “Sanford and Son,” “The Jeffersons” and “Good Times.” These brave actors, producers and directions blazed a trail through American culture, overcoming unimaginable obstacles and setting the stage for a more equitable future. Groundbreaking shows like “Battlestar Galactica” and “Star Trek” visualized a future in which people of every ethnicity worked together while “Julia” portrayed a strong, professional African-American woman, a landmark role model for the millions of young women who tuned in each week. Sitcoms like “I Love Lucy,” “The Cosby Show” and “All-American Girl” provided audiences with a new perspective on the American family – one that more accurately reflected off screen society. Together, these courageous pioneers of television broke through barriers to make television better.

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